54
THE HONGKONG GOVERNMENT GAZETTE, 15TH FEBRUARY. 1873.
HONGKONG.
ANNO TRICESIMO SEXTO
VICTORIE REGINE.
SIR ARTHUR EDWARD KENNEDY, K.C.M.G., C.B., Governor and Commander-in-Chief.
No. 2 of 1873.
An Ordinance enacted by the Governor of Hongkong, with the Advice of the Legislative Council thereof, to abolish Minimum Punishments on Summary Convictions before Magistrates.
W
[11th February, 1873.] HEREAS by various Ordinances of the Colony a Minimum as well as a Maximum Amount of Fine or Term of Im- prisonment is 1.escribed by Way c Punishment for certain Offences triable summarily before the Magistrates; and whereas it is expedient to confer upon the Magistrates the Power of awarding, in their Discretion, a lesser, and in certain Cases, a nominal Punishment for such Offences: Be it enacted by the Governor of Hongkong, with the Advice of the Legislative Council thereof, as
follows:-
uny
Tide.
Preatable.
Punishnets
Convictions
Whenever any Person shall be convicted upon a Summary Trial Minimusa before a Magistrate, of an Offence against the Provisions of Ordinance or Law now in Force in the Colony whereby a Minimum on Summary Amount of Fine or Term of Imprisonment is prescribed by Way abolished. of Punishment for such Offence, it shall be lawful for the Ma- gistrate, if he shall in his Discretion think fit, to award a lesser Amount of Fine or Term of Imprisonment than that prescribed by Way of Minimum Punishment as aforesaid, or to award, in certain Cases, a merely nominal Punishment, anything in sucli Ordinance or Law contained to the contrary notwithstanding.
Passed the Legislative Council of Hongkong, this 11th Day of February, 1873.
L D'ALMADA E CASTRO, Clerk of Councils
No. 20.
GOVERNMENT NOTIFICATION.
The following Census Returns of the Population of the Colony for the year 1872, are published for general information.
By Cominand,
CECIL C. SMITH, Acting Colonial Secretary.
Colonial Secretary's Office, Hongkong, 10th February, 1873.
REGISTRAR GENERAL'S OFFICE,
HONGKONG, 31st January, 1873.
Sir,-In accordance with the Memorandum on C. S. O. No. 3,151, I caused the Census of this Colony to be taken on the night of the 1st December last; the Returns would have been sent in sooner, had they not been delayed by the pressure of work incidental to the commencement of the year.
The Returns call for no particular report. There is an apparent decrease in the number of Europeans and Americans resident in the Colony, but I am of opinion, that the figures given under this head in the Returns for 1870-1871 are not correct, and my reasons for supposing so are these:- If we look at Table No. 13, it will be seen that since the year 1864 there has been each year a gradual increase, on the average of about 82 persons on the previous year. I can, therefore, scarcely think that in April 1871, when the last Census was taken, there could have been so large an increase as 447. There is no doubt that at least 100 of this number ought to appear under the heading of Temporary Residents, the latter only being returned as 57 in 1871, whereas in previous years they averaged more
than 160.
If we take 82 as the average increase per annum in the number of European residents, the correct Return would be nearer 2,371 than 2,736; consequently this year would show an increase of 149, instead of a decrease of 216.
Since the taking of the last Census, the Chinese Population has increased.